A die cutter, either flat or rotary die cutter, may cut sheets of boards on a platform (e.g., a drum or a flatbed), where the boards may be made of corrugated paper, plastic, or other material. For example, a rotary die cutter may include a first cylinder on which cutting knives are installed, and a second cylinder to provide a cutting platform to support the board that is being cut. The first cylinder is commonly referred to as a die cylinder and the second cylinder is commonly referred to as an anvil cylinder, where the die cylinder and the anvil cylinder may be arranged such that the die cylinder is positioned above the anvil cylinder or below the anvil cylinder. A spatial gap may exist between a lowest contour line of the die cylinder and a highest contour line of the anvil cylinder. One or more motors through gears may drive the rotational motion of the die cylinder and anvil cylinder in such a way that a board may feed through the gap between the die cylinder and the anvil cylinder in response to the rotational motion and the frictional force on the surface of the anvil cylinder. The knives installed on the die cylinder may be programmed to cut the board according to pre-programmed patterns via the rotational motion of the die cylinder.
Both the die cylinder and the anvil cylinder may be made from hard materials such as steel. During a cutting process, the knives installed on the die cylinder need to cut through the board. To prevent the blades of the knives from hitting the hard surface of the anvil cylinder, causing damage to the blades, and to protect the surface of the anvil cylinder from scratches, anvil covers may be mounted on the anvil cylinder. In operation, the knives may make contact with and cut into the soft anvil covers, rather than contacting the hard surface of the anvil cylinder.
Anvil covers may be made from durable soft materials such as Urethane. Since a typical anvil cylinder may have a width along the axis direction ranging from 80 to 190 inches with varying diameters, the anvil covers are typically installed in sections of 10 to 20 inches wide individual pieces. For the convenience of discussion, an anvil and an anvil section may be used interchangeably hereinafter. A conventional anvil cylinder may include a horizontal lock channel or a groove across the surface of the anvil cylinder. The groove may be about 1 inch wide by about 0.562 inches deep across the full width of the anvil cylinder. Each anvil cover section includes a first female lock end and a second male lock end.
To install an anvil cover section, a worker typically secures, using bolts or compression force, the female lock end into the lock channel, and then wraps the anvil cover section around the surface of the anvil cylinder. After the anvil cover section is wrapped, a force is applied to the male lock end of the anvil cover section to secure with the female lock end in the lock channel. This is typically done by the worker hitting a hammer or mallet on the male lock end of the anvil cover section with a hammer or mallet. A typical anvil cylinder may need approximately 10 to 12 anvil cover sections to cover the full width of the anvil cylinder.
Additionally, due to uneven wear, anvil cover sections are frequently removed, replaced, and reinstalled in the process known as “anvil cover rotation.” Anvil cover rotation is intended to maintain a smoother surface and distribute the wear so as to increase the useful life of anvil cover sections. Wrapping the anvil cover section around the anvil cylinder can be a difficult task because of the limited access space and different physical structures (e.g., bars and shafts) which creates physical barriers and impediments. Also, the anvil cover sections can be difficult to install because significant force is required from a hammer or mallet to complete the installation process. Further, the process to install the anvil cover sections may require the worker to place his or her hands between the anvil cylinder and the die cylinder, which is an occupational hazard.